The Supreme Court on Thursday told the Union Government that the deaths of 40% of the 20 cheetahs brought from South Africa and Namibia to the Kuno National Park (KNP) in under a year is does not present a good picture.
A Bench headed by Justice B.R. Gavai urged the government to move the big cats to a more conducive environment, if required, and not make it a “prestige issue”.
“Eight cheetahs dying out of a total 20 brought here in just one year does not present a good picture. Last week alone two died. You should look at other possibilities, like transferring them to other sanctuaries irrespective of which State government is running them.. Why are you making this a prestige issue?” the court asked the government.
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Additional Solicitor-General Aishwarya Bhati, for the Centre, said the deaths though unfortunate were expected. She said there were several reasons leading to the deaths. The cheetah project was prestigious and the authorities are exploring various options for the well-being of the animals.
“If the project was so prestigious for the country then so many deaths in less than a year does not present a good picture,” the Bench reacted.
The court asked the law officer to file a detailed affidavit on the circumstances leading to the deaths and posted the case for further hearing on August 1.
Cheetah deaths
On July 14, a male cheetah named Suraj, translocated from South Africa, died at KNP. This took the total number of cheetah deaths at the park in Sheopur district since March to eight. Another male cheetah, Tejas, brought to KNP from South Africa in February had died on July 11.
Besides these two deaths, six cheetahs, including three cubs born to Namibian cheetah ‘Jwala’, have died at the national park since March, in a setback to the reintroduction programme launched with much fanfare in September last year.
The court had on May 18 expressed serious concern over the cheetah deaths at KNP and asked the Union government to rise above politics and consider shifting them to Rajasthan.
